I got in a low speed fender-bender this evening. My Honda ACCORD hit the right side of the rear bumper of a honda Pilot. Since the bumpers on the two cars don’t meet - the hood of my car took the brunt of the impact and bent up a bit at the front of the driver’s side of the hood AND the hood is also now slightly misaligned.
I plan to take it to a body shop tomorrow a.m. - can anyone tell me if it might be even POSSIBLE, obviously I understand the extent of damage will really dictate the scope of repair needed. But I’m just wondering if I am lucky and the damage is really just a small bend in the front left of the hood - is it possible to simply bang out the “bump” and re-flatten the hood and also fix the alignment ? OR is repair not even a remote possibiity when dealing with this type of damage I’ve described ? Am I doomed to have to buy a new (ie used) hood ?
Well, anything is possible. The question is whether it is economical or not. Will an insurance company pay for the fix? Insurance companies do this all the time. They have their ducks in a row, they have repeat-business arrangement with several body shops so they get a discount. Probably best – if an insurance company is involved – just to follow their recommendations. No harm done to ask an inde body shop what they think though. They may have some ideas. One time years ago I had a fender bender, the other car was at fault, and the insurance company told me to get the estimate, then they paid me that amount. I had the option to either do the repair, not do the repair, or do a mickey mouse repair. I got out a hammer and pounded the bumper back to the pre-crash state. Looked pretty good too for an amateur with only a hammer. Not as possible today, as the bumpers now are integrated with the rest of he body. I’m not sure if insurance companies allow this in modern times even.
Everything, even hoods are part of the car bodies energy absorption system. Only an experienced body person can do the job right and let you know the extent. It is sometimes not easy to refit original doors, hoods and even the gas flaps after accidents. ThE hood and bracing underneath is stretched and will often need to be replaced if you want it to look new. Expect that. Insurance companies know this. Otherwise, you or anyone can just do your own thing if looks are unimportant and just pound away. Don’t then expect great results.
The crazy insurance insisited on fixing an aluminum hood vs replacing($$$$ part) on my Subaru Legacy GT. It is not perfect fix but is very difficult repair.
The body shop stated steel (Accord hood) is significantly easier to work with.
I agree with @Texases: just replace it.
It will end up bring cheaper, even if it isn’t the same color.
They’d have to paint it anyway if they have to hammer and dolly it out. That can be difficult to do with a hood depending on where the damage is located and the extent of the damage, since it has all sorts of structural ribbing and stuff.
Replacing a hood is no big thing, but they may be able to straighten it. It may need a hinge or two also. There are a couple things with hoods though. The first is that there is reinforcing under the sheet metal that can make work on it a little harder. But the most important part is making sure that the latch fits perfectly. You don’t want the hood to fly open when you are driving. So just take it to a decent body shop and let them assess the best way to handle it. If its a toss up, go for a new hood. Might even be able to get a used one in the same color.
